Hungarian MEP: The European Commission doesn’t care about balanced debate
Balázs Hidvéghi, MEP of Hungary’s ruling Fidesz, spoke up for Poland in a debate in the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) on Thursday.
The MEP criticised the committee for launching a debate on Poland’s judiciary, inviting the European Commission to participate while not inviting Poland. Hidvéghi said the procedure “runs against fundamental rules of debate”.
The EC “doesn’t care about a balanced debate; it has never cared,” Hidvéghi said, adding that “the left wing here only listens to their own narrative…”
“It is outrageous that leftist politicians gather weekly and unanimously condemn Poland without hearing the Polish government’s position,” he said on Facebook.
Hidvéghi also suggested that the timing of the debate was in connection with Poland’s upcoming elections. “The commission will again take its share in manipulating public sentiment,” he said.
Official calls for ‘demographic turnaround’ to ensure Europe’s competitiveness
Europe’s competitiveness cannot be maintained “without a turnaround in demographic trends”, the political director of the Prime Minister’s Office said in Brussels on Thursday.
Speaking on the sidelines of a European Union summit, Balázs Orbán told Hungarian journalists: “We need European children, we need a new European generation.” A new generation may serve as a basis for economic growth in the bloc rather than immigration, he said, adding that immigration “creates far more problems than it solves”. The government is working to have this principle included in the closing statement of the summit, he said.
Concerning a proposal under which the European Union would finance the purchase of border control equipment, Orbán said such a move would not amount to a breakthrough. Instead, he suggested, Hungary should “receive material and legal assistance to complete a border seal in the south to stave off several hundred thousand illegal migrants each year”.
The EU has not contributed to the construction or operation of Hungary’s border fence, having launched procedures against Hungary instead, the official said. “While this is the case, Hungary and several other states will keep the European Commission under pressure,” he said.
Answering a question concerning an international arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Russian President Vladimir Putin, the official said the Hungarian government acknowledged the ruling.
Read alsoHungary wouldn’t arrest Putin if the Russian President visited Budapest
VIDEO: Budapest City Park receives musical bench: make sure to visit it!
A musical “smartbench” donated by the Polish Institute in Budapest was inaugurated in the City Park on Thursday, the Day of Hungarian-Polish Friendship.
Musical smartbench inaugurated in the City Park
The “smartbench”, playing Chopin and Liszt pieces, was inaugurated by Polish ambassador to Hungary, Sebastian Keciek, who said the institute was working to “build bridges to reinforce ties between the two countries”. He said he trusted that this cooperation would “further reinforce the thousand-year-old friendship between the two nations”.
Joanna Urbanska, head of the Polish Institute, said “this present is from our heart and I am certain its users will receive it with love.”
László Baán, the ministerial commissioner in charge of developments in the City Park, said the bench was “a symbol of true and deep friendship not only present in high culture but in everyday life, too”.
The solar powered bench offers a selection of Chopin and Liszt pieces played by pianist Gábor Farkas through a touch screen. Passers-by can also use it as a WiFi hot spot or charge their mobile phones. It also indicates levels of UV radiation, atmospheric pressure, humidity, and air pollution.
Presidents mark Hungary-Poland Friendship Day
President Katalin Novák and her Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda held talks by phone on Thursday, marking the Day of Hungarian-Polish Friendship, according to a statement by the Hungarian president’s office. The two presidents highlighted the importance of the centuries-long friendship between Hungarians and Poles, and made a commitment to doing everything to maintain and further strengthen those ties.
“It is a friendship that has stood the test of time and in which solidarity for each other has always played an important part,” the communications director of the presidential Sándor Palace said. The two presidents also said they were glad that their good personal ties could contribute to the friendship of the two nations.
Before the talks, Novák laid a wreath in Balatonboglar, near Lake Balaton, at a building in which Polish refugees had received schooling during the second world war. The ceremony was attended by the Polish ambassador and a delegation from Poland’s parliament.
Meanwhile, the dead of the Polish Prime Minister’s Office, Marek Kuchcinski, marked the day of Polish-Hungarian friendship in a Twitter post on Thursday, stating that despite the attacks against Polish-Hungarian friendship “we are still connected by a bridge built on centuries of support and solidarity”.
He noted that the day of Polish-Hungarian friendship was established by former President Lech Kaczynski.
Read alsoSwedish PM: Orbán should explain why our NATO membership is not approved
Hungarian national holiday marked in US and Poland
March 15 always carries a relevant message in the United States because Americans understand that Hungary is a freedom-loving country and that Hungarians have proven themselves to be freedom fighters throughout their history, Hungary’s ambassador to the US said, marking the national holiday in Washington on Wednesday.
US memorial
Speaking to MTI, Szabolcs Takács said Hungary always had to make it clear in the US that it was in its national interest that the war in Ukraine end as soon as possible.
Though “pro-war rhetoric is very strong in American public life”, more and more people, particularly conservatives, acknowledge that Hungary is a credible representative of peace efforts, Takacs said.
“They must understand that it is in our national interest that we have peace in our neighbourhood as soon as possible because that’s the only way we can guarantee the safety, prosperity and economic progress of Hungarians living in the Carpathian Basin,” the ambassador said.
Hungary is committed to Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty, but expects it to respect the rights of national minorities, he said.
Takács on Wednesday laid a wreath at the statue of Hungarian 19th-century reform statesman Lajos Kossuth in the US Capitol Building before attending Kossuth Foundation’s wreath-laying ceremony at the Kossuth House in Washington.
The national holiday was also commemorated at a Hungarian citizenship oath ceremony in Chicago.
Péter Szilagyi, the deputy state secretary for policies for Hungarian communities abroad, said March 15 should be reminder for Hungarians to be “insistent on everything our ancestors fought for”.
“Those who choose to be Hungarian choose this heritage, and can be proud of it,” Szilágyi said.
Read alsoOrbán: Petőfi would turn against those who want to put Hungarians into a European superstate
Hungarian national holiday in Poland
Hungary’s March 15 national holiday commemorating the 1848-49 revolution and freedom fight was marked in Poland with an award ceremony, a panel discussion and an academic competition on Wednesday.
At a ceremony in Warsaw, Orsolya Zsuzsanna Kovács, Hungary’s ambassador to Poland, was presented with an award in recognition of her efforts to promote Polish-Hungarian partnership.
In Wroclaw, in western Poland, a panel discussion was held on the revolutions of 1848 with the participation of Hungarian, Polish and German experts. The event was organised by the local Hungarian and German diplomatic missions, the Polish-Hungarian Association of Wroclaw and the Liszt Institute of Warsaw.
Around 2,200 students from 315 secondary schools participated in a nationwide academic competition on the history of Polish-Hungarian relations.
Read alsoPetőfi exhibition at Times Square in New York!
Wizz Air suspends two Budapest routes for four weeks
Wizz Air flights between Budapest – Edinburgh and Budapest – Warsaw will be suspended for nearly a month starting from late March.
A reader of airportal.hu has discovered that tickets for the Hungarian airline’s Budapest – Edinburgh route cannot be booked between 28 March and 21 April. But there is another related change: Wizz Air is also suspending its Budapest – Warsaw route. There will be no flights on this route between 26 March and 26 April.
Flights between Budapest and Edinburgh will operate on Tuesdays and Saturdays until 25 March, airportal.hu reports. Following the airline’s change to a summer schedule, the route will be suspended for almost a month. Tickets can be booked from 26 April, but the days will change. From that date, flights will operate on Wednesdays and Fridays.
The reader, who informed the portal of the change, pointed out that unfortunately this timing might be inconvenient for many travelers. The routes will be suspended at the same time when Easter is celebrated. According to the reader, many people working abroad will be visiting their families back home during the holiday, so the airline’s decision to change its schedule comes at the worst time possible.
Wizz Air’s response
Airportal.hu contacted Wizz Air to find out the reason for the flight cancellations. As explained in their response, Wizz Air aims to offer its passengers the lowest possible fares to the most popular destinations. For this reason, the airline constantly monitors the performance of its routes. The reply states that as a consequence, tickets cannot be booked due to the optimisation of the routes.
Passengers who have already booked tickets on these routes will be informed of the changes by e-mail. For these passengers, an alternative timetable will be offered by e-mail. In addition, the airline will offer a compensation of 120 percent of the original ticket price in WIZZ credits or a full refund of the original fare. However, this only applies to passengers “who have booked directly on the airline’s website or via its application.”
Read alsoNew routes to start from Budapest Airport this spring
President: Hungarian-Polish friendship will last forever
Hungarian President Katalin Novák met Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki ahead of a B9 summit of central and eastern European NATO member states in Warsaw on Wednesday. They were in agreement to further strengthen Hungarian-Polish friendship.
Novák said on Facebook that Polish-Hungarian friendship was “not only a historical slogan but a current reality”. She said they hoped that the war will end as soon as possible, adding that “we are certain that Polish-Hungarian friendship will last forever,” she added.
Morawiecki said that he had discussed with Novak the Russia-Ukraine war, economic challenges, the energy crisis and inflation. “I am glad that our Hungarian friends understand the severity of threats we are facing in the near future,” he added.
Novák also met on Wednesday Polish cardinal Konrad Krajewski and paid honours at the tomb of Stefan Wyszynski, a cardinal who died in 1981. She is scheduled to address the B9 summit which is also attended by US President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Read alsoHungary receives billions more in EU money, but it’s already blocked
Polish newspaper: Hungary is a Schengen visa paradise for the Russians
The Rzeczpospolita Polish newspaper regards Hungary as a loyal state to the Kremlin and ranked Italy and Greece in that category as well. A recently published article says that these are the countries where Russian nationals can acquire a Schengen visa the easiest.
Index.hu summed up the Polish article referring to the consultations of the Association Of Tour Operators In Russia (ATOR) with market players. The Polish language article states that Hungary, Italy and Greece help Russian nationals the most to acquire their needed documents for an EU visa. Furthermore, they added that Hungary is the Russian tourists’ most popular European destination.
Russian tour operators registered at the Russian embassies have no problems with the so-called bots, software applications running automated tasks (scripts) over the Internet when they register in the Hungarian and Greek visa centres. The Polish newspaper highlighted that Hungary follows a loyal visa policy towards Moscow despite the EU sanctions.
- Read also: Russian official: Moscow-Budapest direct flight used by the Russian army may be created soon
Hungary is a popular destination among Russians because of the easily obtainable EU visa. Furthermore, plane tickets and services are cheap. Moreover, the country is accessible during the whole year and can satisfy almost all needs, the Polish newspaper argues.
According to Russian tour operators, Italy is also among the easy destinations. Russian nationals can claim a visa in person. Market players do not follow the activity of the bots in that respect, index.hu wrote.
Visa centres started to use bots generating registration requests and reserving free slots before the pandemic, said ATOR. But they did not mention whether the use of such software proliferated after Russia invaded Ukraine. Getting into other EU countries without using such programmes for the Russians is difficult or even impossible.
Among the Asian countries, Vietnam and Indonesia are the most popular destinations for Russian tourists.
Featured image: illustration
Read alsoLeaked: Hungarian military plane had a mysterious accident in the USA! – PHOTOS
Reader’s letter: Who is responsible for national oppression in Transcarpathia?
Reader’s Letter – Unchanged
The more news I read, the more banners about oppression of the Hungarians in Ukraine I see. That’s really surprising because today millions of refugees found homes across Europe including Hungary. And no one discriminates or oppresses them. Such actions are at least unfair and impolite. But why does this happen? What are the reasons?
15 percent of the population is Hungarian
Mainly Hungarians in Ukraine live in the Transcarpathian region. This area historically belonged to Hungary, however, in XXth century it became a part of the USSR. As a result, the Hungarians were torn from their homeland. National majority became the national minority. Nowadays about 150.000 Hungarians live in Transcarpathia, about 15% of the population of the region.
All these decades the Hungarian people had been feeling oppressed but a couple years ago the situation deteriorated so much. Oppression and provocations happened more often and became harsher. For example, a few days ago the local flags and the Hungarian-language signs were removed. Also the personnel purges in Hungarian public organizations were conducted. Ukrainian authorities deny this fact but actually those things happened.
Moreover, in the Transcarpathian region a huge number of men were called-up during the mobilization. Most Transcarpathian Hungarians serve in the 128th mountain assault brigade, stationed in Mukachevo. This brigade bravely fought near Bakhmut where both sides took severe tolls. Hungarians were not an exception. According to a Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó, “many Hungarians from Transcarpathia have died in the war”. Also he called for peacemaking cooperation and conflict de-escalation.
Unfair situation in Transcarpathia
As a matter of fact, the situation is extremely unfair. Hungarians, who are not directly involved and who are not responsible for this, pay a high for this conflict. Transcarpathians bravely and desperately fight on the battlefront, they don’t flee the frontline, and they die for Ukrainian independence. In response, the Ukrainian government deprives them of their national identity. Of course, someone will be right saying that they are citizens of Ukraine and they fight for their state. But they still are a part of the Hungarian ethnic group and every death is a significant loss for Hungary. However, judging by the Ukrainian authorities’ actions, these losses are not so significant.
Journalists connect all these actions with Viktor Baloha, People’s Deputy of Ukraine and ex-Governor of Zakarpattia Oblast (Transcarpathia). He repeatedly spoke negatively about Transcarpathian Hungarians and told them to leave the country. He, with the help of his brothers and son and connected with him organized crime turned the region into a criminal empire which can be bled in their own and state interests. He is responsible for what is going on in the region.
Nevertheless, all this lawlessness may be explained by the activity of the local underworld leaders. If we look at this situation globally, we can see serious national oppression of Hungarians in Transcarpathia. It seems like Hungarian people are transformed into second-class people. Sincerely hope that that’s not true. Otherwise it is an extremely strange return hospitality.
Author: Marek Szymkiewicz, Poland
Former Polish leader: Hungary is half out of the EU!
The former Polish deputy foreign minister shared some shocking details about how the European Union thinks about PM Viktor Orbán. To sum up, Hungary is half out of the EU. A Huxit would be disastrous for both the economy and society.
Hungarian veto on Ukraine’s EU accession?
Jan Truszczyński served as the deputy foreign minister of Hungary’s greatest regional friend, Poland, between 2001 and 2005. As we wrote on Friday, PM Viktor Orbán met with President Zelenskyy in Brussels, at a European Council summit. Orbán was one of the EU leaders who did not applaud the Ukrainian president when he arrived. Later, he posted a photo in which Zelenskyy seemed to bow to him when they met on a separate negotiation between CEE regional heads of state and prime ministers and the Ukrainian leader. Zelenskyy invited him to an official visit to Kyiv, but Orbán’s press chief said the Hungarian prime minister would only travel to the Ukrainian capital when necessary and relevant.
Jan Truszczyński said about Orbán’s attitude that his lack of enthusiasm might be a sign of possible sabotage regarding Ukraine’s EU accession, szmo.hu wrote. He added that other member states would cooperate in that regard and the project has support in Brussels.
Truszczyński: Orbán half out from the EU
About Hungary’s leadership, he said that the government did not make “absurd steps.” He said he hoped that would remain so in the future. Mr Truszczyński added that PM Orbán was not a pariah, but one of his legs was out from the European Union. “We have to tolerate that he would not be dismissed”, the former Polish foreign policy strongman highlighted to TOK FM, a Polish radio station.
He said that Ukraine would fulfil all the prerequisites they needed for Ukraine’s EU accession in the next few years.
Experts agree that a Huxit would be catastrophic for the Hungarian economy and society. A lot of Hungarians work and study in other EU countries. If they returned home, unemployment would jump significantly, and since they are mostly opposition voters, the opposition parties would strengthen. Such an option is only imaginable if Orbán received only lectures from the European Union but no money. It seems that, besides lectures, concerning the rule of law and other aspects, at least the euro billions of the RRF funds will arrive in Hungary from 2023.
Read alsoApart from Russia, only Hungary is likely to sink into recession in Europe
Polish official: despite disagreements, Polish-Hungarian cooperation is important
Though Poland and Hungary have their disagreements, cooperation between the two countries is crucial to countering efforts aimed at restricting the sovereignty of European Union member states, the head of the Polish prime minister’s office said on Tuesday.
Poland and Hungary disagree on their policies towards Ukraine and Russia, but are building an alliance of countries that strive to protect their sovereignty within the EU more effectively, Marek Kuchcinski said, appointing the new members of the programme council of the Waclaw Felczak Institute of Polish-Hungarian Cooperation.
Besides the prime ministerial and government level, the two countries must also develop their cooperation in culture, science and on the level of social institutions, Kuchcinski added. He also underscored the importance of fighting disinformation concerning Polish-Hungarian ties.
Read alsoShocking: Shopping is a third more expensive in Hungary than in Poland
Shocking: Shopping is a third more expensive in Hungary than in Poland
There are significant differences between food prices in Hungary and Poland. Prices in Hungary are, in some cases, 30-40 percent more expensive than in the Northern European country. Why exactly is that? Read on to find out.
Prices in Poland are much lower
Why are Hungarians food prices so much more expensive that those in Poland? According to napi.hu, experts say this is because the productivity of Hungarian domestic agriculture lags behind that of leading European countries. Even Poland, which is in the middle-ranks. Food prices started to rise in Poland in mid-2022 as well. However, it is still much cheaper to shop there than in Hungary, according to an analysis by novekedes.hu.
The economic portal has investigated the reasons for the sometimes seemingly unjustified price differences, taking into account several aspects.
VAT is also higher in Hungary
The analysis points out that the lower prices in Poland are only partly explained by the fact that the VAT on basic foodstuffs is zero, while in Hungary the predominant products are those with a 5 percent sales tax. The Polish VAT is 23 percent, compared to the Hungarian 27 percent. However, according to novekedes.hu, the differences are so large for the food products under investigation that they cannot be explained by differences in VAT only.
The differences: milk
The portal’s investigation compared the original, not discounted, prices in Lidl’s Hungarian and Polish special offer magazines between 12 and 14 January. At Lidl in Hungary, a litre of one and a half percent milk costs HUF 399 (EUR 1). In Poland, each litre of half-percent milk costs HUF 271 (EUR 0.69). In other words, the price in Hungary is about a third higher.
The differences: cheese and margarine
A kilo of edam cheese costs HUF 4,316 (EUR 10.97) in Hungary. Meanwhile, in Poland, gouda cheese costs HUF 2,720 (EUR 6.91). That is even more than the difference in the case of milk, which is about 37 percent. In the case of margarine, you have to pay HUF 3116 (EUR 7.92). Meanwhile, in Poland, the price is HUF 2973 (EUR 7.56) per kilo. That is a five percent difference between the two prices.
The differences: sausage, soft drinks and Chinese vegetable mix
The price of a pair of sausages available in Hungary is HUF 2897 (EUR 7.36). In Poland, home-crafted sausages cost HUF 2425 (EUR 6.16). In Hungary, a litre of apple and pear drink costs HUF 240 (EUR 0.61), compared to just HUF 125 (EUR 0.32) for a litre of orange or lemon drink in Poland. The difference is considerable, as soft drinks are 48 percent cheaper in Poland than in Hungary. The pre-packaged Chinese vegetable mix is the top performer: while it costs HUF 1999 (EUR 5.08) a kilo here, it costs less than half that price in Poland, at just HUF 962 (EUR 2.44).
Experts say this is because the productivity of domestic agriculture lags behind that of leading European countries, and even Poland. The main reasons are competitiveness and productivity problems, and lower sectoral competition.
Read alsoExperiment: Life in Hungary is more expensive than in Western Europe
Reader’s Letter: the energetic future of Hungary
Reader’s letter
“Winter has come. Europe has been hardly dealing with it. Fuel and electricity prices are growing, inflation breaks new records but the wages are the same. We got used to the government advice to heat our apartments less. Now we should get used to living in the cold”, one of our readers, Marek Szymkiewicz, a Polish national wrote us recently. Below you may read his letter unchanged.
“A bathroom full of hot water became a luxury. More than that, not everyone is able to have a special traditional Christmas dish on his table. Such a situation is common for all European countries. Hungary, for instance, has the first place in the EU in terms of annual overall price increase. Also more than 1500 medicines are missing from there. Hungary, as a country which is trying to deal with a devastating fuel and energy crisis, isn’t excited about what’s going on. That’s because all the industry is based on electricity. Giving up from current exporters providing cheap energy resources creates a threat to national security. So the question arises: what to do next?
It seems logical to provide a “diversification” of the energy supplies. For example, in Hungary there is a strategy to procure “as many types of energy sources from as many resources and via as many routes as possible”, said a Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó. It is offered to import electricity from Azerbaijan, Slovenia and Romania. Fuel suppliers are replaceable too. For example, PKN Orlen is buying 143 petrol stations around the country. This once again confirms the fact that there are no hopeless situations and solutions always exist. But there is always a but in this imperfect world. Cui bono?
Definitely, not for Hungary. Of course, a short-term problem will be solved. However, without the Hungarian own energy system, own energy sources, own power plants, only then electric security for Hungary will be guaranteed. Until that, technically, the country will be dependent or even addicted. We have already seen what it may lead to this year. In case of global political and military conflict, who knows, supplies from Azerbaijan, Slovenia and Romania will be closed. What shall we do in that case?
In that case Hungarians will have to get used to price rises and so on… Obviously, the government is already worried about providing national security in the energy sphere. Actually, constant purchasing resources from abroad is a half-measure which can’t guarantee state development and prosperity. We need to think about the future. What can the government offer today?
Today Hungary as the EU member follows the strategy of increasing its share of renewable energy. It is necessary to keep installing new wind turbines, solar panels, to keep using hydro and geothermal sources of energy. Nevertheless the most lucrative way is to increase the share of nuclear power. Current 4 nuclear reactors are quite old, they need to be upgraded or replaced.
If 4 reactors provided more than a half electricity needs in 2019, so 8 such ones can cover all the existing needs. If there are more than 8 reactors, Hungary will turn into an energy supplier state. It will help to strengthen both energetic security of the EU and Hungarian position on the international stage. Such projects need colossal investments, for example, from the EU. But to make this happen, a fair resource allocation is needed. Yes, it may sound like dreams which never come true but we need to strive for it because the future is in nuclear energy. Another question, do political leaders have enough determination?
Unfortunately, 2022 is a severe year for the entire world and for every European citizen. And as it was in COVID days, we need to join our forces for the common future as we want to see a prosperous Europe.”
Author: Marek Szymkiewicz
“I’m a PhD student from Poland. I’m deeply concerned about ongoing energy crisis in Europe. I think that the situation is becoming worse and worse every day. I don’t want to live in the cold. I believe in nuclear energy which is commonly used in your country. Unfortunately, we don’t have any operating nuclear power plants in Poland now. So I wrote a letter to your media to encourage local people to keep using this type of energy.”
VIDEO: Hungarian tourist bus full of passengers catches fire on the road in Poland
A horrible accident happened to a Hungarian tourist bus in Poland. The vehicle carrying 48 people has caught fire on the road. The bus was returning home from a tour of Krakow when the accident happened. The vehicle was engulfed in huge flames.
A Hungarian tourist bus caught fire and burned with huge flames in Poland, Index reports. The back of the bus burst into flames several metres high and the whole vehicle was engulfed in smoke within mere minutes.
The passengers were on a sightseeing tour in Krakow and were on their way home when the bus started smoking on the motorway. By the time firefighters arrived, the entire passenger compartment was already burnt out.
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The vehicle was carrying 48 people. Fortunately, they were all able to get off in time and no one was injured, tények.hu reports. The footage clearly shows that the flames, which were several metres high, started at the back of the bus. The smoke engulfed the entire vehicle within a few minutes.
The video
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Should we expect a 380 or 425 HUF/EUR exchange rate in 2023? Here are the prognoses
ING Bank shared an analysis comparing the exchange rate changes of the Central Eastern European currencies (Poland, Czechia, Hungary, Romania). They compared what factors played a role in the exchange rate change of the different currencies, and found that global and regional ones were not the most decisive ones, especially in the case of the forint. That means the Hungarian national currency may have a bright next year, but there are some prerequisites the government needs to fulfil to reach a better exchange rate. You may find the details below.
In their analysis, ING Bank argues that multiple external factors affected regional currencies. These include the strengthening of the USD harming all emerging currencies. Furthermore, because of the Russian-Ukrainian war, investors became more cautious in the region. Finally, increasing interest rates also had a disadvantageous effect on countries having high state debt like Hungary.
However, the Hungarian forint lost its value even against its regional competitors like the Polish zloty, the Czech koruna and the Romanian lei. When compared to the Polish national currency, the depreciation of the Hungarian currency reached 10 percent. That means something local weakened the forint, portfolio.hu wrote.
From an ING chart showing the value change of the domestic currencies against the USD between November 2018 and November 2022, it is clear that the regional currencies moved together until April-May 2022, when the forint broke away from the others.
ING argues that in the short term, global factors can have a devastating effect on domestic currencies. However, Poland, Czechia and Romania managed to grow again a couple of months after the invasion began. Meanwhile, the forint’s recovery was slower and weaker. That is because in a midterm, the fundamental and vulnerability differences matter.
They found that in the decomposition of the Czech koruna against the USD between March 2020 and November 2022, the global and regional element was minus 11 percent, while the local was plus 12 percent. Thanks to that, the koruna could strengthen against the American currency.
Meanwhile, those rates were minus 10 percent and minus 13 percent in the case of the Hungarian forint, resulting in an overall minus 23 percent drop.
That is because Hungary is exceptionally vulnerable. The rate of energy import is the highest in Hungary in the altogether consumption, there are frequent changes in the economic policies, the government is balancing between the EU and Russia, and the reception of the EU funds remains a question.
Read alsoWill Hungary’s forint get stronger or weaker due to the government’s latest decision?
What can the forint expect in 2023? If the negotiations with the European Commission result in a fortunate agreement, the forint might go below 380/EUR. A bigger strengthening is unlikely because markets already priced the success of the talks.
Others are not that optimistic. The Societé Generale expects the Hungarian forint to get stronger, but only until the 400/EUR threshold. Unicredit believes the HUF/EUR exchange rate will be above 425 in 2023. However, all prognoses agree that everything depends on the result of the EC-Hungary negotiations.
Hungarian foreign minister praised Poland’s leaders
Communication channels with regard to the war in Ukraine must be maintained to counter the risk of escalation, Péter Szijjártó, the foreign minister said on Thursday in Lodz, Poland, addressing a meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), adding that Hungary “sends a message from the direct vicinity of the conflict that peace is needed as soon as possible”.
A ministry statement noted that Szijjártó told the meeting that as a neighboring state of Ukraine, Hungary was “directly and severely impacted” by the effects of the conflict, noting that Hungary is carrying out the largest humanitarian operation in its history.
The minister also noted that Poland was struck by missiles around two weeks ago, which may well have led to the outbreak of the third world war had Poland’s leaders not reacted “so calmly and responsibly”. Politicians and journalists who referred to a “deliberate missile attack”, he said, had acted “shamefully” by risking escalation. Similar risks remain as long as the war continues, he added.
Read alsoThe Hungarian President arrived in Kyiv! – UPDATED
Referring to the thousands of Ukrainian families lacking electricity amid the winter, Szijjártó said this added urgency to the need to seek a peace settlement.
Meanwhile, the minister referred to “problematic” communication deficiencies in respect of the war, saying that the world “gave up hope for peace” by blocking communication channels which were kept open even during the Cold War with a view to avoiding another world war.
Polish energy giant to conquer Hungarian fuel market?
Polish energy group ORLEN on Thursday announced its entry onto the Hungarian market with the takeover of 143 petrol stations.
ORLEN is taking over the petrol stations from Hungary’s MOL in a deal linked to MOL’s acquisition of over 410 petrol stations in Poland under an agreement with PKN Orlen and Grupa Lotos. MOL signed that deal in January, after the European Commission required PKN Orlen to divest assets as a condition for approval of its acquisition of Grupa Lotos. At the same time, MOL agreed to sell a number of its own petrol stations to PKN Orlen.
ORLEN has already taken over 79 petrol stations in Hungary that operate under the LUKOIL brand and will take over the remaining 64, gradually, by mid-2024. ORLEN is also taking over 39 of MOL’s petrol stations in Slovakia.
Read alsoSerious problem for petrol stations: the Hungarian refinery has not restarted
Head of Warsaw National Cultural Centre receives Hungarian state award
Rafal Wisniewski, the head of Poland’s National Cultural Centre (NCK), was awarded on Monday the Hungarian Cross of Merit, Gold Cross, at Hungary’s embassy in Warsaw, in recognition of his work popularising Hungarian and central European music in Poland.
NCK has been organising the Eufonie festival since 2018, with programmes including works by Béla Bartók, Zoltán Kodály, Ernő Dohnányi, György Ligeti and other Hungarian composers, in the interpretation of world-class artists such as the Budapest Festival Orchestra, conductors Zsolt Nagy and Iván Fischer, organist László Fassang and pianist Zoltán Fejérvári.
On Friday, NCK secretariat leader Wieslawa Mayer was handed the Gold Cross, and literary translators Anna Butrym and Daniel Warmuz received the Silver Cross.
Read alsoHere is when the Hungarian Parliament can vote on Finland and Sweden’s NATO accession
“Hungarians are Trojan horses of the Russians” – Czechs and Poles boycott V4 meeting
Hungary is usually the last country to agree to EU sanctions packages. They ask for concessions and threaten not to support further sanctions. This is the view of the President of the Czech Chamber of Deputies. Slovakia cancelled the Visegrád 4 meeting.
“Because of Hungary’s energy policy, the European Union cannot have a unified position. The Hungarian government has a pro-Russian policy,” said Seznam Zprav. This is why Czechs are boycotting the upcoming meeting of V4 presidents in Bratislava.
Read alsoChinese secret police in Hungary
According to information from Slovak Napunk, the meeting has also been rejected by Markéta Pekarová Adamová, president of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, and Milos Vystrcil, president of the Czech Senate, who said it was a way of signalling their disagreement with the Hungarians.
According to diplomatic sources, the presidents of the two houses of the Polish parliament will not attend the meeting. Slovakia will, therefore, not hold the meeting as planned.
Mikulás Bek, the Czech minister for European affairs, says the Hungarian government was attracting more and more critics, rtl.hu reports.
Missile attack against Poland sent the Hungarian forint plummeting again
The Hungarian national currency has been strengthening in the last few weeks thanks to some good news from Brussels regarding a possible EU-Hungary agreement and drastic measures implemented by the National Bank of Hungary. However, it seems the rockets that hit Poland yesterday evening did not only devastate lives or the sense of safety of the locals but also currencies.
The Hungarian forint started yesterday strong due to the weakening of the USD. The trend broke in the afternoon when news came about explosions in Poland, killing two and caused by probably a Russian missile. Experts agree that it is unlikely that Moscow would launch an attack against NATO with a single rocket. However, NATO member states highlighted the issue had to be carefully investigated, portfolio.hu wrote.
The Kremlin denied its involvement in what happened and blamed Ukraine for the missile attack.
In any case, the Hungarian forint is very volatile to foreign or domestic reports. And one can imagine a few worse scenarios than a Russian missile hitting NATO territory and causing the deaths of NATO citizens, regardless of whether the “attack” was intentional or a mistake.
Therefore, the forint started plummeting yesterday evening. The HUF/EUR currency exchange rate increased to 414 (from 407). The process took only a few hours. Meanwhile, the Polish zloty also weakened.
After the first phase of falling, the Polish and Hungarian currencies were pulled back. But just for the short term. In the evening, both continued their lowering against the euro. At 11 pm yesterday, the rate of decrease stood at 0.3 percent in the case of the forint.
